Thursday, December 21, 2017

Purifying our Appetite for Knowledge at The Table. By:C.C.


There is an increase today in the available  information and our "knowing" of the things of God. Numerous degrees, studies, theories, philosophies, and even truth tainted by personal ideologies have somehow swept into the sacredness of faith. 

Perhaps, we need applaud the aspirations that stem from the honest desire and longing to fill the void of unknowing within us, yet only God alone can instruct and truly carry us to clarity in the capacity that He wills for us.

The intellectual ascent is laden with limitations . The Desert Fathers spoke about the essentials for guarding of the intellect . Perhaps this was always the case. It seems the danger today is in the rapid way the thoughts of man can spread into the shallowness of unrooted minds and souls, heavily influencing one's concept of God and leaving untouched His reality.

We see the rivalry of egos and comparisons, of ideologies and methods to bring about positive advancements in Church affairs , riddling with noise the sacredness of God's gift to us.
Faith suffers not because of poor evangelization, but due to being evangelized by the poverty of another's concepts and ideals, while the Sacred is pushed aside , closed away, and dismissed.
To be a disciple of the Lord demands lowliness.

Personal conversion , and reverence before God born from holy fear is important to keep in mind before commencing any work for Him.

To pursue study not with intent of knowing , but with a desire to love and to serve God more fully. Not the God we have constructed in our minds to accommodate the superficial way we have grown to live in the Western World. But the God born to us in the poverty of a manger, died for us at the sufferings of the Cross, and left for us the only thing necessary to live out a life of virtue.

"Do this in memory me" is the most sacred remembering, it is where we are most instructed.
The Eucharist is the true Source, and the most Essential.

At the table of remembering men are born and made. We are humbled and fed. We are instructed and guided. We are fulfilled and provided for. This surpasses linguistic limitations , the heights of intellect, and pierces with Infinite love the wounded heart. It purifies our instructions, guides our steps, and provides the grace for our work to be entrenched in the love and will of our Lord.

Growing up , I tactfully learned that the best time to speak to my father and present my lavish ideas was after he had eaten. It was at the table where I knew he would best receive news of my desired weekend plans , a troubling math grade (frequently), or other things that if presented in the haste of passing, and to a man's unfed belly would ensure a troublesome reaction. I understood the simple way that being fed would allow him to deal better and be more content. To think more clearly , and this at a natural level.

Our Lord calls us to His table , with our hunger, with our ideas stirring, with the yearnings, and the zeal in our hearts, not to beg our permission, or ask pardon, but to imbue us with the supernatural aid and sacramental grace to enable our steps to be most aligned, most nourished, and most fulfilled. To purify the intent of our knowing and our learning.

May we always strive to be humble students at the Lord's feet, be at peace in our unknowing, and yearn to use all that is known to us for the greater good.